| Client: | US Department of State |
| Project: | Interagency Working Group on International Exchanges and Training |
| Contract Type: | Blanket Purchase Authorization (BPA) built on GSA IT/70 Schedule |
Challenge
Create an electronic clearinghouse with data on all international exchange and training programs sponsored by the Federal government.
A Presidential executive order required agencies to improve the coordination, efficiency, and effectiveness of Government-sponsored international exchanges and training. The Interagency Working Group on International Exchanges and Training (IAWG) was tasked with creating a system to accurately track worldwide the staff training efforts of US Agencies. The system required the collection of data locally around the world, and the subsequent aggregation of data for use in Washington DC.
Solution
Devis created, and now hosts, the Federal Exchanges Database (FEDS). This 100% outsourced Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) oriented eGovernment system is being used by over three dozen departments and independent agencies. Devis provided technical development, maintenance, training, data collection, as well as managed hosting. The system runs entirely on open source software saving literally thousands of dollars in licensing fees.
Data is shared on more than 200 programs involving more than 140,000 participants and $1 billion annual in federal expenditures. The IAWG team won a Hammer award in 2000 in large part due to the efficient data collection and reporting mechanisms put in place by devIS. Once posted to FEDS and approved by IAWG staff, data is available via web-based reports on the IAWG public website (www.iawg.gov).
The Department of State IAWG staff performs all of their day-to-day administration and monitoring work using the FEDS system. Coupled with Devis' business process re-engineering, FEDS has streamlined the data collection process for the IAWG. It also has provided the federal agencies submitting data two useful tools:
1) Standard and ad-hoc reports which provide access to government-wide exchanges and training information, and
2) A data management tool which may be used by departments and agencies without any software licensing fees.
Technical Details
The FEDS application is a controlled access environment developed in Java using Extensible Markup Language (XML) formatted data to seamlessly pass data via the Internet to a centralized database hosted at Devis' secure hosting facility. The initial version, created in 1999, was the first US Government-wide implementation of a Java application which used XML formatted data to maintain a central database.
FEDS uses a standards-based Application Server architecture. In addition to the standard reports provided with the system, users can create custom reports using a simple web interface that allows for dynamic queries to the database. The entire database can also be easily converted to many other database formats, including MS Access, allowing users to further analyze and query the data using existing computer skills and software.
Results
The project was developed within a strict IT budget, and Devis worked carefully to maximize technology investments with a focus on minimizing life-cycle costs.
In addition, the FEDS system has dramatically streamlined the data collection process for the IAWG. An article on the FEDS system in Federal Computer Week called it the "Rosetta Stone" for its ability to allow information from disparate systems to be included in the same database.